Colorado octogenarian made over $800,000 selling bogus Michael Jordan collectable sports cards
When we were kids, many of us collected, traded and flipped sports cards that came bundled in those Topps / Bazooka Bubble Gum trading cards packages; so it’s not difficult to believe that an elderly person would still have some valuable collectables. But this week, the U.S. Attorney’s Office out of the Eastern District of New York charged an 82-year-old man from Denver, Colorado, with “selling and trading fake Michael Jordan basketball cards in a scheme that prosecutors said resulted in him making more than $800,000 over four years,” according to Fox News.
A federal court in Brooklyn, New York, charged Mayo Gilbert McNeil, 82, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a scheme involving counterfeit sports trading cards. McNeil was arrested Wednesday morning in Denver. He will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date.
“As alleged, Mr. McNeil defrauded sports memorabilia collectors of more than $800,000 by intentionally misrepresenting the authenticity of the trading cards he was peddling when, in fact, they were counterfeit. The FBI remains committed to investigating fraud at all levels and bringing the subjects who engage in it to justice,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Driscoll.
According to court papers, between April 2015 and July 2019, McNeil conspired with others to sell and trade sports trading cards, including 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie cards, with victims he found via the Internet and through online selling platforms. McNeil fraudulently represented that the sports trading cards he was offering were graded by a professional authentication company, when in reality the trading cards were not authentic. He defrauded his victims of over $800,000 in cash and authentic sports trading cards that were traded for the counterfeits.
Authentic cards similar to the 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie card have sold previously for more than $100,000, according to CBS News.
One victim, from Manhasset on Long Island, forked over $4,500 to McNeil for one of the counterfeit Michael Jordan cards in 2019, according to the criminal complaint. Another victim, from Michigan, shipped two authentic Tom Brady football cards in exchange for two fake Jordan cards, the complaint alleges. ~ The New York Post
The Brooklyn U.S. Attorney’s office has charged the 82-year-old McNeil with conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
(Cover photo: Image credit: Twitter) / (Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York)
Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today / Follow Richard on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram
